The Evil One is hidden —but he has very educated friends…

HOMILY OF POPE FRANCIS FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2015

Dear brothers and sisters,

In Friday’s Gospel reading, Jesus drives out a demon, doing good to the man once afflicted, but some from the crowd of witnesses accuse him of being in league with Beelzebul. There was another group that did not appreciate him and sought to interpret Jesus’ words and actions in a different way, against Jesus.

Some, for envy, others for doctrinal rigidity, others because they were afraid that the Romans would come and massacre them; for many reasons they sought to distance Jesus’ authority from the people, even with slander as in this case.

Against such misinterpretations of a situation Christians are invited to discern the roots of any given situation, because in the life of faith temptations always return, the Evil Spirit never tires.

The Evil One is hidden, he comes with his very educated friends, knocks at the door, asks for permission, comes in, and lives with that person. Drop by drop, he gives him instructions on how to do things with relativism.

Anesthetize the conscience. This is a great evil. When the Evil Spirit succeeds in anesthetizing the conscience, it is then he can claim a true victory, for he has become the master of that conscience.

What can one do against such attacks? Watchfulness. The Church counsels us to always make an examination of conscience: what happened today in my heart because of this?

Discernment. From where do these comments, words, teachings come? Who says this? Let us ask the Lord for this grace: the grace of discernment and of watchfulness.